Beijing judges on live streaming shows to disseminate legal knowledge

BEIJING -- Zhu Zheng, a 36 year old Judge in Beijing, spent four months on the script for his first show.

He checked almost all divorce cases of the past few years online to prepare his talk on Huajiao, a popular live streaming platform in China.

"Domestic violence, trust issues and relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law top the reasons for divorce in China in recent years," Zhu said. "It is important that people understand the law to protect their own interests."

Zhu's live show attracted about 3.8 million viewers, during which he analyzed legal cases and took questions.

Zhu is a judge in Fengtai district people's court in Beijing and the star of the fourth episode of China's first live streaming legal show, Justices Coming.

Since November last year, the show has attracted more than 30 million viewers, according to Huajiao. The first season had seven episodes and the second season has broadcast three episodes.

Each episode is centered on one theme -- private lending, marriage rights, telecom fraud -- and hosted by a judge from a Beijing court. Viewers can interact with the judge in real-time.

"I never imagined there were so many laws on family violence," said one viewer on the "bullet screen," a barrage of comments by users that floods screens in real-time during a live show.

"Usury is a rip-off with such a high risk, and we should keep away from it," commented another during the episode on telecom fraud.

"The judges involved have years of trial experience," said Liu Yi, senior official with Beijing higher people's court.

"Live streaming is a new way of spreading knowledge of the law," Liu said.

The revenue from live streaming reached 30.4 billion yuan ($4.8 billion) in China last year, according to the Ministry of Culture.

"In live shows, viewers are not only spectators but solution-seekers," Zhu said. "To promote better understanding of the law, we should analyze common problems and offer effective solutions."